Otherside
by Mia-Marauder-Potter
Summary: Hermione Granger's parents are killed when she was ten, so she was adopted by the Greengrasses and renamed Macie. When the war goes bad, an accident with a time turner sends her to 1981. When she gets back to 1998, she finds out that she'd gone farther than she'd first assumed. With nothing changed, she goes back to help them instead. But is she really done with her past?
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

**Mort**

**1990**

When it happened, the Grangers were totally unaware of the war. Sure, things had been more violent lately, but they were muggles. How were they to know that the violence came from Death Eaters chasing witches and wizards fleeing from the war?

So the night that the front door was blown off its hinges while Helen and Richard Granger stood in the kitchen cleaning the dishes, they'd had no warning. Helen dropped the plate in her hand on the floor while Richard ran out to confront whoever had broken into their home, but halfway to them, a strange green light had hit his chest and he fell to the ground. Helen had run after him and the same hit her mere moments before three people popped directly into the living room.

Hermione Granger stood cautiously at the top of the stairs. She'd heard the door crash open, but there had been no yelling or banging after that, so she took a step down. "Mum? Dad? Are you- oh!"

A hand closed over her mouth and she struggled against the person holding her from behind. There hadn't been anyone up there… had there? They spun her around and she saw a concerned woman staring into her eyes. The woman put a finger to her lips and Hermione quieted, trusting her only because she looked so worried. She slipped her hand into Hermione's and twisted her ankle and… they disappeared.

It was explained to her many hours later.

She'd been taken to a large, fancy home that looked a bit like museums she'd been to with her parents. The woman had left right after leaving her there and there she'd sat for an eternity before anyone came back for her. In the end, two women - including the one that had left her there - and a man had returned.

"You brought her back here?" the blonde haired woman asked loudly, cursing colorfully when she removed her jacket, revealing a deep injury in her back. The other woman moved over and began healing it with a stick and light that only served to confuse Hermione more. "What the fuck do we do with her now?"

"Quiet, Kasia," the black haired woman scolded. "What would you have me do? Leave her?"

"Take her to a muggle place!"

"For them to track her down again," the man scoffed, waving his hand at her dismissively. "Of course not."

"Well what do you plan to do with her?" the woman - Kasia - asked skeptically.

"I'd appreciate it if you did not speak of me as if I'm not here," Hermione snapped, her nerves worn down. "And I would also like to know what's happening. Where am I? Did you kidnap me?"

The black haired woman shot a dirty look at Kasia and then offered her a tentative smile. "We didn't kidnap you, dear, of course not. I know everything happened very quickly, but we had no choice. You were in danger."

"Well, who are you? Why would I be in danger? I'm eleven."

"I'm Emma Greengrass," the woman smiled and waved at the man. "This is my husband, Daniel. Over there is Kasia - she's my sister. I know it seems unlikely that you would be in danger, but there's a lot you don't know."

Hermione furrowed her brow. She already knew that she was missing something and she was getting increasingly frustrated with the way they dragged their feet to explain it to her. "Then please tell me."

Kasia let out a sigh and walked over to her. "You've had things happen that you couldn't explain. Things that science and reason can't explain for you. Something… magical."

"Magic doesn't exist," Hermione denied immediately. "Any advanced enough science can be called magic by those that don't understand it."

"Well, whatever science this is, we haven't figured it out yet," Daniel said with a wink. "Truthfully, you're a witch."

"But- but I can't be!" Hermione denied, getting upset. With the stress over being so confused, and not knowing where her parents were, and how _tired_ she was from being up way past her bedtime, her hair began sparking. It only startled her a bit. It happened very rarely, and she thought it had to be some sort of biological reaction… or something.

"That's magic, love," Emma nodded at her hair. "You're upset, we know. But we're going to help you, and we'll take care of you."

"I'd like to see my parents," Hermione requested finally. The three adults exchanged a glance at one another. "Where are they?"

"What's your name, kid?" Kasia questioned.

"Hermione Jean Granger," she answered, eyeing her nervously. She was much gentler than she'd been before, and Hermione got the impression she was used to working with kids.

"Hermione, I'm very sorry, but your parents didn't make it."

Hermione had lived a rather sheltered life, honestly. She'd had a small family consisting of her and her parents. They were both dentists with their own practices, which meant that they had a decent amount of money. That had a nice house and took vacations every other year. Hermione didn't have many friends at home, but she was friends with the boy next door, who while he didn't share her love of knowledge, he'd appreciated it.

Since there were so few people in her life that she truly cared for, she hadn't experienced any sort of loss or grief before. She was only eleven and she'd just lost both of her parents, her best friends, her biggest supporters.

The rest of the night was filled with a lot of firsts. Her first time taking potions - calming draught and a sleeping draught - her first time going into shock, her first time (of many) losing people that she loved, her first time finding a new family, and her first and only time permanently changing her name.

That night, she was guided to a room that was much bigger than her room at home and tucked in. Daniel and Emma sat on either side of her bed, holding a hand each, and stayed there until she'd stopped crying and fell asleep.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Adjusting was difficult.

The weirdest issue she had was probably going by a different name. Her new name was Macie May Greengrass. Since no one knew her by her old name aside from her adoptive parents, they didn't mess up, but she definitely did. To practice getting used to it, she was taken on many trips around the world where she'd introduce herself to numerous people until it became habit. As well as that, she spent a ridiculous amount of time writing her name over and over until she no longer had to cross out the H.

Something else that was odd was having siblings. She had two sisters - one her age named Daphne and one a year younger than them named Astoria. She'd been an only child before, so she wasn't entirely sure _how_ to have sisters. Aside from that, the two were obviously very close already, and she was worried about not being welcome or intruding.

Luckily, it was a non issue. The two girls were extremely understanding and very welcoming. They'd also been wonderfully helpful in teaching her about magic. She found it endlessly interesting. She was still certain it was science in some form, but for the moment, she was content with just learning about it in its base form.

The last thing they did to integrate her into the family was change her hair color and give her something to tame her curls. By the end, she had wavy, black hair and looked a great deal like them since they already had matching brown eyes.

It turned out, Kasia lived with them. More than that, Macie had been right. Kasia used to be an American teacher in the American wizarding school, Ilvermorny. She'd left when things had begun getting dangerous back home and had returned to help fight the war.

They hadn't said much about the war. All she knew was that there were people that didn't like muggles, muggleborns, and sometimes half bloods and sometimes, they might just have to kill you for it. The Grangers had only entered their radar when Macie's name had popped up on the Hogwarts registry, which had been stolen - it had been recovered a few days later - and read through to keep muggleborns from coming to Hogwarts.

Macie's concerns that they'd find her again were calmed quickly. Legal and blood adoption meant that she was, by all means, Macie Greengrass, the pureblood twin sister of Daphne Greengrass. Apparently, Emma had even checked with Dumbledore that her name was on there correctly.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

**1991**

Upon getting to Hogwarts, the two sisters were nervous, but they were nervous together. It was startling how much they were inseparable already, as well as Astoria. The trio were extremely close, luckily.

While both of them were Sorted into Slytherin, they didn't get to relax. They sat together at the table and Daphne leaned over.

"I heard Harry Potter is here this year."

Macie recognized that name. She'd been told about him a bit. Apparently, he'd killed the Death Eaters' leader. Well, they didn't think it was him since he'd been an infant, but he'd been the only one that had survived the Killing Curse. Unfortunately, the movement hadn't ended with their leader's death and instead, his highest ranking officers had picked it up.

"Potter," a boy with nearly white-blonde hair scoffed. "Stood by Weasley of all people. He wouldn't even shake my hand!"

"Perhaps because you were a prat about it," a boy with light brown hair rolled his bright blue eyes. "He's not been seen in _years_ and you're talking about choosing the right people? How the hell is he to know you're not an arse?"

"Shut it, Nott."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

**1993**

That year, their family gave asylum to Sirius Black.

He'd escaped Azkaban after being thrown in there for betraying his best friend. Everyone knew it had been bullshit, but it was war. No one had the energy to fight for anyone that wasn't in immediate danger, and he hadn't been.

He'd escaped upon realizing that Peter Pettigrew was still a danger to Harry and had been on his way to Hogwarts when Kasia had caught him and dragged him back to Greengrass Manor. The girls were home for summer when he arrived and were, unfortunately, in the floo room playing Exploding Snap when she threw him to the ground upon Apparating inside.

While Astoria was sent to get their parents, Kasia stepped up to the mirror to spell her split lip closed and get rid of the bruise forming.

"Kasia, is that Sirius Black?" Macie wondered nervously. The blonde woman just shrugged and Macie watched Sirius struggle to push his hair out of his face, so she leaned over to help him. Their eyes met and she saw no danger in them and only desperation.

"Mace, no," Daphne gasped, tugging her back. She smacked her sister's hands away and quietly took off Sirius's ropes. He sagged in relief.

"Macie," Daniel's voice called sharply. She got to her feet and stood in front of Sirius.

"Don't turn him in," she demanded. "He could hurt me and he didn't. There's something about him, Dad."

"He has any number of reasons to not hurt you," Kasia told her while Emma wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "The first being that I'm here and I'd beat the shit out of him."

"I mean it," Macie insisted. "No one believes he did it anyway, right? Can't we just help him?"

"Why else would he be here, love?" Daniel wondered, honestly confused. "You don't think we'd turn him in, do you?"

"Well… Kasia had him tied up and tossed him to the ground and…"

Daniel reached down and offered Sirius a hand. Sirius took it very reluctantly and got to his feet. In an offhanded gesture, Kasia removed the silencing spell no one realized she'd cast.

"Thank Merlin," Sirius breathed, rubbing his throat. He grimaced in pain. "You're not turning me in then?"

"James adored you," Daniel confirmed. "You were brothers, and since we are the last family loyal to the Alliance, it's my duty to help you."

"Help _me_?" Sirius stared at him like he was crazy. "Why not help _Harry_?"

"The girls are good friends with him," Emma nodded at the three girls just as Astoria snuck her way back into the room to stand between her sisters. "He spends Christmas and Easter here and comes a few weeks before school. In fact, he's due in a few days."

"I can see Harry?"

"Not like that," Kasia scoffed, earning himself a glare.

"What she means is that you need to get cleaned up," Daniel clarified. "You can stay here as long as you need, Sirius."

"Thank you," Sirius breathed. "Thank you."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

**1995**

"You're an arse."

"Excuse me for not taking a teenager's opinion to heart," Sirius rolled his eyes, following Macie into the library. Daphne and Astoria had gone to see Blaise while Macie opted to stay home, not in the mood for socializing. "C'mon, kitten, you've been in a mood lately. What's wrong with you? I miss arguing with you."

Macie waved her wand behind her silently. When he grunted in pain as a book collided with the back of his head, she felt a trill of satisfaction and kept walking. The couch in front of the fire was empty per usual and she sat down. When he sat next to her, she resigned herself to his company and tossed her legs over his lap. "Maybe I'm tired of you following me around like the big dog you are."

"Nah, that can't be it," he waved her off. "I've got it!"

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Yeah, what is it?"

"You've got a crush on me!"

Macie did roll her eyes this time, smacking his arm. "You're like twenty-two years older than me, Sirius. I'm sorry to disappoint, but I don't."

"Aw, come on. I'd have a crush on me!"

"You _do_ have a crush on you."

"And it's lovely."

Before she could ignore him and open her book, he grabbed it out of her hands and tossed it across the room and out of view. Her eyes widened in horror and she felt her hair begin to spark. "Sirius!"

"Come on, just tell me!"

"Just _leave me alone_," she snapped, getting to her feet to chase after her book. Sirius got to his feet as well and Apparate across the room to stand in front of the book, appearing just before she got to it.

"C'mon, kitten, I'll stop bugging you if you do."

"You wanna know?" she asked, clenching her fists. "Fine. My parents died five years ago today!"

There was a moment of silence in which she stepped around him and picked up her book. Before she could walk away or out of the room, he grabbed her hand gently, prompting her to glare up at him with tears in her eyes that she'd spent so much energy holding back.

"Macie."

"Hermione," she corrected softly. The look he was giving her was unbearably gentle compared to the teasing he'd been doing before. The energy drained out of her and she led him back to the couch where she sat down and crossed her legs, looking at him. "I am- I _was_ muggleborn. When I turned eleven, the registry book in Hogwarts was stolen and my family was attacked. The Greengrasses found me and took me in. Officially, Hermione Granger died that night along with her parents and three of the six Death Eaters that came to kill us."

"Shit," he cursed quietly. "I'm sorry, kitten. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't tell anyone," she shrugged, swiping at a tear as it fell. "Daph and Story don't even know my real name. Aside from my parents and Kasia, you're the only person that knows."

Sirius reached out for her. Instead of hugging her like she expected, he grabbed her arm and gripped her forearm and she did the same, confused. He grabbed his wand and pointed it at their intertwined arms. "I, Sirius Orion Black, do swear on my wand and magic to keep this secret with my life."

She felt the magical flames sink into her skin and gasped at the cool pain it caused. When they released their arms, she saw a small bond mark on her forearm, a bond mark indicative of an Unbreakable Vow. She ran her fingers over it quietly. "You didn't have to do that, Sirius. I trust you."

"You always trusted me," he pointed out. "I just wanted to prove that I'm worthy of that trust."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The Department of Mysteries was Macie's first true battle and it hadn't gone well.

The kids had been grabbed by various Death Eaters. The one that had grabbed her was one she recognized as Antonin Dolohov. He'd tugged her hard against him and made her face the battle as it raged in front of them. His words had been soft and unsettling and had pointed toward wanting to take her. That was why she'd let out a scream to alert everyone of where she was.

Kasia had heard her.

Dolohov had been in the process of trying to Apparate them away when Kasia had reached through the wards, grabbed Macie, and torn her away from the Death Eater. While Sirius had taken Macie over to the other kids, Kasia had fought. She fought until Bustrode had sent a cutting hex her way and it had hit her throat.

She'd died.

The funeral was quiet and held in Greengrass Manor. Afterward, the family insisted Harry not go back to the Dursley's no matter what Dumbledore wanted. He'd lost some of his political power and so was not as much of a threat. So Harry officially moved in with them.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

**1996**

The night Dumbledore died, there was a battle on Hogwarts grounds. Death Eaters had been let into the school by Pansy Parkinson and they'd fought. Many people had been injured including Remus, Bill Weasley, Macie, and Harry.

After the battle, everyone had been sent home. Dumbledore was dead, Snape was firmly on the side of the Death Eaters, and they'd lost Hogwarts. It was a dark night.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

It was the fifth battle of the past two months when Daniel and Emma ended up in the same spot. They typically responded to different raids, but one was much larger than they'd anticipated and Daniel had to come help.

It was a trap.

The Greengrass parents were held hostage in Malfoy Manor for three weeks before they were finally deemed no longer useful and were murdered.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

**1997**

Astoria was killed January 7th when she went to save Luna Lovegood from being kidnapped. She'd been killed using Sectumsempra and then left there in the middle of the muggle street to bleed out. They didn't find her until they used dark magic to track her blood.

They couldn't take her body with her without being caught, too.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

They had one Horcrux. They had one and they'd killed it thanks to one of Theo's contacts that got them some very illegal basilisk venom that they used to infuse a goblin made dagger with.

They'd have been so glad for the death of another. It was less work for them. They hadn't even had to do anything. They'd have been so glad to see it gone if it hadn't been Harry.

Daphne died trying to get to him when he gasped awake and was killed again.

Macie and Sirius got out of there before they could be taken, too.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

**1998**

Macie stepped out of the tent cautiously. Sirius was lying on the grass with a blanket under him and stared up at the sky silently. She could see that he was bleeding through the bandage around his ribs as well as the shirt he wore, so she walked over silently and sat down next to him. She shoved his shirt aside and began messing with the bandages, spelling water on the nasty injury that had come from dark magic to clean it out. Once it was cleaned up, she waved her wand to collect new bandages and got to work putting them on. "How's the pain?"

"Better than yesterday," he answered. To her frustration, he pointed up at the sky, jostling the injury. "See that one?"

She considered scolding him but instead laid down next to him to see which one he was pointing at. "The one with that brighter star at the bottom?"

He nodded quietly. "That's Leo. The bright star is Regulus."

Understanding passed through Macie. Sirius's brother had fought for Voldemort, but he'd died to stop him. It was a touchy subject for Sirius, so she'd never tried to bring it up herself just as he never mentioned the family she'd lost eight years prior. "You're thinking about him?"

"I'm thinking that he died for a good cause but he was still a shitty fucking person," Sirius confirmed, his voice just as soft through the entire sentence.

"Maybe he didn't know how to be brave like you," she suggested quietly. He turned his head to look at her and caught her already frowning at him. "We can't all be as brave as you, Sirius."

"Maybe if he was, we wouldn't be here."

"I don't think Regulus could change this," she disagreed softly, dropping her head on his shoulder. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Of course, kitten."

"Don't die."

Sirius tensed. How the hell was he supposed to agree to that? They were all dying. And he knew he was a selfish man, so he knew he wanted to die before she did. He wasn't sure he could handle seeing her die, too.

"Everyone I've ever loved has died," she continued, her voice a whisper. "Except for you. Don't die, Sirius. I need you. I can't… I don't know how to do this alone."

Sirius sighed and pulled her closer to press a kiss to the top of her head. "I won't leave you."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The last horcrux was one that they had to get close to Voldemort to kill. It was a suicide mission, truthfully. They went.

It was a large battle and they held it at Hogwarts with all of the remaining Order members and any help from surrounding magical communities that they could get. They were horribly outnumbered, but they still did it.

Neville ended up being the one to kill Nagini. No one could really figure out how, but their moment of celebration cost them.

Death Eaters swarmed more aggressively than before and they were surrounded and separated. Macie didn't give up, though. She kept fighting and managed to engage one of them in a duel. When she turned to shoot up a shield in front of Sirius, she missed a curse from her attacker and it hit a precious piece of magic held on a chain around her neck.

The time turner didn't break, but it interacted with the dark magic instead. There was a bright light and a horrible pain.

"Sirius!" she screamed desperately. It was no use. Abruptly, as she was calling his name, she was tossed to the floor and the light faded away. It took her a moment to be able to move or understand anything, but when she was clear again, she found Sirius standing above her with his wand out looking… wrong.

"Who the hell are you?" he snapped. She blinked up at him rapidly. "_Who are you_?"

OoOoOoOoOoOo


	2. Prism

**Espérer**

**1981**

Sirius was fucking exhausted with the world.

He'd spent the entire day interrogating a Death Eater and had gotten absolutely nothing out of him and only a lecture from Moody. Usually on those days, he and James went to get a drink and relax. Unfortunately, his favorite drinking buddy was being chased by a maniac, so he was forced to go home to drown his sorrows.

He tossed his jacket on the couch and made his way to the kitchen, levitating a glass and his firewhiskey out of two cupboards at the same time. As the amber liquid poured itself, he grabbed a couple of ice cubes and dropped them in. As he made his way to the couch, the bottle put itself away. Halfway to the couch, however, there was a bright light that reminded him of the muggle cliche of death. Instead of seeing heaven and angels, an injured girl a year or two younger than him dropped to the ground and hit her head hard on the wood floor.

Instantly, Sirius had his wand out and pointed at her. She looked confused and panicked and unable to hear his demands, so he gave her a second to gather herself. In that time, he debated whether or not he'd imagined her screaming his name. Surely not, right? He'd never seen the woman before in his life. When she began shifting, he pointed his wand closer at her. "Who the hell are you?"

She blinked at him, still confused.

"_Who are you_?"

"S-Sirius?" she managed, coughing. The movement made her groan in pain and she grabbed her stomach, which he finally realized was bleeding. "Yaxley got me with a gouging hex earlier. I couldn't heal it but- where are we?"

"In my fucking apartment," he stared from her face to her stomach where more blood was pooling. "How the hell did you get in here? I have this place warded like crazy."

"Apart- what?" she frowned deeply, carefully looking around. Her eyes widened and she looked back at him, panic evident on her face now. "Oh my god, Sirius. What year is it?"

"1981," he answered, glaring. "And there's a war going on, if you weren't already aware, so maybe you'd like to explain how the hell you got here."

"Oh my god," she breathed, wincing. "What's the date?"

"October 31st," he frowned. "Why?"

Despite the injury that was clearly causing her a great deal of pain, she shot to her feet. He kept his wand trained on her as she took a moment to steady herself. "I'm from the future, Sirius. We can fix everything!"

"The future- you expect me to believe this?"

"I think you care more about James and Lily and Harry than making sure I'm actually from the future," she said sharply. He tensed.

"Are they in danger?"

She nodded rapidly, grabbing her wand from the floor where it had fallen with her. "You-Know-Who is going to murder them tonight unless we save them. Peter did it, he's the spy, he's a Death Eater!"

"_Fuck_," Sirius shouted. When he went to Disapparate, she grabbed his arm and he was forced to take her with him or risk splinching them both. They appeared just outside the home in Godric's Hollow to find it completely destroyed.

The pair sprinted into the house together. While he let out a cry of agony, she ran up the stairs. He was on his knees holding James's body when she got back down and though her words did nothing to break through his pain, the sounds of a crying Harry did. His head raised to find Harry in her arms, getting her blood all over him. Sirius snatched him from her immediately.

"Lily, was she-,"

"She's gone," the girl said sadly. "But you're here and Harry's here."

"Pettigrew," Sirius spat, his mind drifting to the man that had gotten his family killed. "I'm gonna fucking kill him!"

"Sirius, no," she gasped, moving to stand directly in front of him. He shoved her so hard that she hit the nearby wall and had to grab onto a table to stay standing. She used her wand to close the front door. "Sirius, stop! I'm from the future! If you go after Pettigrew, you'll go to Azkaban and Harry will die!"

Sirius was unable to ignore that. He stopped trying to leave and stared at James's body again. A moment later and with much difficulty, she grabbed his arm to stay standing and he let her. "They're dead."

"Harry isn't," she reminded him with a great deal of effort. "Focus on him. Take him in, become Lord Black, fight the Death Eaters that will keep fighting to make it easier when Voldemort comes back."

"Comes back," Sirius repeated, feeling sick. She hummed.

"He will come back. Not now, but in thirteen years or so. His followers agendas that they've pushed for over a decade makes the transition so much easier for him. Whatever you do, Sirius, don't leave Harry. Fix the world for him because he deserves a better world."

"For Harry," Sirius repeated. "For Harry. I can do that."

"Don't let Hagrid take him," she continued, eyeing the door. "He's going to come soon and- oh…"

Sirius Apparated away and set Harry down. He came back, grabbed her right before she fell, and then took her back to his apartment. She'd passed out as she fell and with her bleeding out and the baby on the floor, he knew he couldn't do it alone.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Remus arrived at the apartment after an emergency Patronus from his friend mere minutes earlier. He came through the floo and found Sirius on the ground with a woman in his lap and blood surrounding them. Aside from her, there was a baby on the ground crying.

The first thing Remus did was take the woman - whose name Sirius claimed he didn't know - and place her on the couch, which he transfigured into a surgery table. It took him nearly twenty minutes to heal her up and in that time, Sirius found a baby strength calming draught for his godson and an extra strength one for himself and Remus.

Sirius didn't have much information for him aside from what he'd been told and could figure out himself. It made a sick sort of sense to them, really. Peter had always been unreasonably jealous of the rest of them, and it had become quiet resentment when James had married Lily.

The woman gasped awake five minutes after they'd fallen into silence and tossed herself off the table. She held her empty hands up at them and they were surprised when she wandlessly cast Protego. She dropped it, however, when she realized where she was and saw Sirius sitting with Harry drifting off against him.

"You have him," she said softly. "You didn't go after Pettigrew?"

"Moody can catch him," Sirius grit out.

"Who are you?" Remus asked after a moment of silence. She shook herself and looked between them.

"Macie Greengrass," she introduced, looking down at her stomach. She poked it and was grateful to find there was no pain. "Who healed me?"

"I did," Remus muttered. "You nearly died."

"Might as well," she muttered to herself. Then, louder, "I have to get back. I need to see if it worked."

"Is changing time… recommended?"

Macie screwed up her face. "No, but those rules mean nothing if we're facing genocide. I don't care anymore. I didn't mean to come here, someone was just trying to kill me, but I got here and I couldn't not change it."

"So you changed time," Remus said slowly. "What do we expect? Do you know us? Will we know you?"

"Expect a fight with Death Eaters. Expect it to be entirely political. If you don't handle it right, this is all for nothing. I do know both of you… it's just Sirius and I now. You died a few months back."

"Merlin…"

"And you might meet me, I'm not sure. My name would be Hermione Granger, if this all works out. I don't know why I was sent here but it's the only break we've had in this war so don't mess it up for me."

"How _did_ you get here?" Sirius asked finally. "There was a light and then… you were here."

"Someone threw Conteram Seorsum at me and it hit my time turner."

Remus winced. "That's a dark curse."

"It's a dark war."

"Do you think that could send you home?"

Macie shrugged. "I have no clue how it sent me here to begin with, so we might as well try. Do either of you know how to cast it?"

After a moment of silence, Sirius reluctantly handed Harry to Remus and got to his feet, his wand pointed at Macie. "This won't kill you?"

"I don't care anymore if it does," she told him honestly. "So you might as well try."

Sirius cast the spell.

The same bright light lit up the room and when it faded, she was gone.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

**1991**

"Give it back!" Harry screamed, chasing the blonde boy.

"Why don't you make me, Potter?" Draco replied as he turned a sharp corner. "I'm faster than you are."

"I'm smarter than you are," Harry smirked, stopping in his tracks. Draco did the same, turning around to frown at him.

"What are you- oh!" he gasped as two boys snatched the photobook from his hands. He glared at them. "I thought you two were on my side!"

"Yeah, but he gave us three galleons each to help him," Theo said lazily. "Why'd you steal it, anyway?"

"Because he insulted my father again."

Harry rolled his eyes as he made his way over to his friends. "Because your father is an arse."

"Harry James."

His eyes widened as Remus turned the corner, looking stern. "Sorry Moony."

"I won't tell Minerva if you won't," Moony winked before turning to Harry's cousin and friends. "Boys, it's time for dinner. Go wash up."

Draco, Theo, and Blaise rushed off, leaving Harry behind with his uncle. He looked up at the man with a frown.

"Are you okay? You don't look so good and it's nowhere near the full moon."

"We're worried," Remus admitted.

"About what?" Harry asked him. "The Wizengamot? I thought Orion was sure it would go well for us."

He shook his head. "You. You're starting school soon. We won't be able to make sure you're okay."

"Aunt Minnie will be there," Harry reminded him. "She'll take care of me."

Remus nodded. "I'm just an old worry wart. Come on, let's get going. Narcissa will be very cross if we're not on time for dinner."

Harry let out a laugh as the pair started walking. "I remember when she turned Draco's hands into hooves because he was late."

"Yes, and I'd rather not endure that treatment myself," Remus agreed, chuckling.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Sirius winked at Harry as he slipped into his chair just in time and turned back to his father. "I spoke with Fudge again today."

"Oh?" Orion raised an eyebrow. "And?"

"He says that Umbridge is the best undersecretary he's ever had and that he will not sack her," Sirius grimaced. "Looks like we need more proof."

"Is this the woman that used the Imperius to get her bills passed?" Narcissa questioned with a frown. Orion nodded and she shook her head. "Can you not get a history of spells from her wand?"

"To do that, we'd have to inform her we'll be doing so and she could very well erase it. It's a tough spell but wholly possible," Remus spoke up. "We're stuck between a rock and a hard place."

"Do you think she's Imperiusing Fudge?" Harry asked, looking up from his roast. Sirius considered the question, though it was Orion that answered.

"It's unlikely," his stand-in grandfather told him. "What do we know about Fudge?"

"He gravitates toward power," Harry replied quickly. Orion quizzed him on politics often, and there was a wonderful sort of satisfaction when he got things right and saw that pride in the man's eyes. "And believes that working for power will keep him elected, which so far seems to be the truth. Still, he obviously prefers the dark over the light since he quietly helped Dolohov gain control of the dark. We don't believe we can use him."

"Exactly," Orion nodded firmly, satisfied. "And all of that means that it's more likely he lets her do whatever she likes, as it supports those that support him."

"Why is he still Minister?" Blaise asked with a frown. "Can't you guys do something about that?"

"We're trying," Narcissa told the boy. "He is surprisingly tough to get rid of."

"A bit like a cockroach," Sirius grinned at the kids.

"Is it possible to talk about anything other than politics at dinner?" Minerva interrupted sharply, looking annoyed.

"Sorry, Minnie," Sirius winked at her. "Didn't you have something to ask Harry?"

She lit up, looking over to her nephew. "I was hoping you'd come with me tomorrow. I'll be speaking with a muggleborn witch and her parents and was hoping you'd be willing to help. It's a trial for a program I've been running by Albus. I think it'll help muggleborns adjust, having a halfblood or pureblood to guide them."

"It sure would've helped me," Ted Tonks cut in. "I was pretty lost when I joined the wizarding world."

"I think that's a wonderful idea," Sirius grinned. "Get you away from these little monsters," he said, waving at Harry's cousin and their friends. Draco glared at him, though there was no heat behind it.

"I'd love to," Harry agreed. "Tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow," Minerva confirmed. Meanwhile, Narcissa had fixed her older sister with a glare.

"Where is your daughter?"

Andromeda shrugged, completely unconcerned. "On her way, I'm sure."

"Does she not know how to read a clock?" Narcissa questioned. "Shall I transfigure her into one?"

"Cissy, please," Andromeda rolled her eyes. "She's in the junior Auror program. Mad-Eye is not an easy man to work for."

"Everyone knows dinner is at six," Narcissa told her firmly. "There is no excuse."

Their bickering continued for another five minutes until Tonks finally arrived, still dressed in her Auror robes. She expertly avoided her aunt's nagging and tucked into dinner, engaging in a conversation with Remus about a book he'd given her the week before.

The rest of dinner was relaxing, and the entire group went to bed soon after. Black Manor was host to everyone for the summer, something that Harry enjoyed greatly. He loved his family but he'd grown tired of being the only kid in the large place. Living with the Tonks' was fun, but even Nymphadora Tonks had gotten a job and had less time for her distant cousin.

Early the next morning, Sirius woke him and tossed his formal robes at him. "Get dressed, Pup."

"Lemme sleep," he argued lamely.

"You told Minnie you'd go with her to meet that muggleborn witch," Sirius reminded him, nudging him gently. "Hurry up, you two leave in a half hour."

"Fine," Harry muttered, tossing the blanket away from him. "But I'm putting a niffler in your vaults."

"Watch it," Sirius glared playfully. "That's your inheritance, you know. Now get going."

"Like I didn't get enough from my parents to last two lifetimes." Harry hopped in the shower and washed up quickly before slipping into his robes and beginning the fight with his hair. "This never works, Padfoot. Why bother?"

"Because Minnie will give me a lecture if I don't make you," Sirius laughed. "Just put some in there and tell her it didn't work. It never worked with your dad, either."

"Or my grandpa," Harry sighed. "Why were we cursed with curly hair?"

"Hey, don't complain," Sirius nudged him out the door once he'd put his shoes and outer robes on. "Your family's unruly hair led to the invention of Sleekeazy, which is where your family fortune came from."

"Except for the properties and the old money," Harry huffed, skipping down the stairs to meet Remus and Minerva at the front hall.

"Harry James, did you even try to control your hair?" Minerva sighed, pushing it to the side in an attempt to fix it.

"I did, I swear," he sighed tiredly. "Padfoot says it's impossible."

"It is," Remus confirmed. "We had to thoroughly spell James's hair on his wedding day and that only lasted for about two hours. He barely had time for their vows before it escaped."

Minerva let out an exhausted sigh. "Very well. Let's go, we don't want to be late."

"Hey, wait," Harry looked up at her. "What's this muggleborn's name?"

"Oh," she blinked. "I thought I'd mentioned. Her name is Hermione Granger. Now come on, let's go." With that, Harry let her pull him out of the door without looking back.

Sirius had paled dramatically and stared at the spot Minerva had just stood. He wasn't even sure he was breathing.

Remus was the first to move once they were gone. He grabbed Sirius's arm and physically dragged him down the hall and into the study. "We knew this might happen. She said it herself."

"What does it mean?" Sirius wondered. "Does it mean it's all starting?"

Remus shrugged helplessly. "It means we have to be prepared and I believe we should encourage a friendship between Harry and Hermione. We'll want to know if something happens."

"Right," Sirius agreed, breathing out slowly. "Right."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Harry pulled his robes tighter around him as they approached the dark green door. Minerva knocked three times and stood back, waiting. After a long beat, the door opened to a tall man in a sweater with thick, curly brown hair and a smile.

"Hello," he nodded. "How can I help you?"

"We're from a prestigious school in Scotland," Minerva told him, only lying a little. "We're interested in your daughter Hermione."

"Come in," he waved her inside. "This bright young fellow also works at this school?"

Harry grinned at him. "I'll be going to it."

"He's my nephew," Minerva explained. "I thought it might be helpful to meet someone that knows about the school."

"Well my wife just got home with Hermione. I'll go grab them quickly."

They watched as he ran up the stairs and Harry glanced at Minerva. "You lied."

"Most muggles don't exactly open the door when we claim magic," she pointed out. The pair looked up at the sound of feet rushing down the stairs.

A bush of curly hair raced into the living room and upon further inspection, they found it to be a young girl with buck teeth and a bright smile. Behind her came her parents, though they walked instead of running.

"Hello, Hermione," Minerva smiled, shaking her hand. "I'm Professor Minerva McGonagall, and this is my nephew, Harry Potter. We wanted to talk with you about the school I teach at, Hogwarts."

Hermione's brow furrowed. "Oh. I've done lots of research on the best schools. I've never heard of Hogwarts."

"That's because it's for special people," she explained. "Very few people know about it."

"What sort of special people?" Hermione's mother, Helen, asked with a slight frown.

"Has anything ever happened that was… unexplainable? You made something move or changed something that shouldn't have changed?"

Helen and Richard exchanged a look. "How do you know about that?"

"I can do it too," Harry spoke up. "So could my parents and Padfoot and Moony."

Minerva nodded at his words. "As unbelievable as it is, it's magic. And that's what we teach there."

"Magic," Hermione scoffed. "Magic doesn't exist."

Minerva pulled out her wand and pointed it at a lock of Hermione's hair. "Wingardium leviosa." The hair floated up and danced across her cheek.

"But that's… impossible," Hermione gasped. "How do you do that?"

"The same way you will when you learn," Minerva smiled.

Hermione glanced to Harry. "You grew up with this? Can you do magic?"

Harry nodded excitedly. "Padfoot wouldn't teach me much because he's afraid of Aunt Minnie but my cousin Draco taught me what his mother taught him!"

Minerva's eyes narrowed on Harry. "He did, did he?"

Harry's smile slipped from his lips, his eyes wide with fear now. "Um… no?"

"Hermione," Helen cut in. "You already picked a school."

The young girl looked between her parents and Harry, obviously stuck. "I know, Mum, but…. this is an incredible chance. I don't know if I can pass it up."

Her father waved them into the kitchen and Harry and Minerva waited for a horribly long five minutes before Hermione rushed back into the room, excited. "I'd love to go!"

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Harry James, do not go in there," Minerva told him sternly. "You can go with Sirius when he takes you shopping for your school things."

He gave a pout before catching up with Hermione. "What are your favorite muggle subjects?"

"I love science and history," she grinned at him. They'd made quick friends and Minerva had been forced to remind them to focus more than once. "What about you?"

"I only got some muggle schooling," Harry frowned. "Moony insisted on it, but I liked science. It's interesting."

"Who are Moony and Padfoot? You keep mentioning them," she questioned curiously as they made their way to Ollivanders' which was at the other end of Diagon Alley.

"Moony is my Uncle Remus and Padfoot is Sirius. Padfoot is my godfather, but they raised me together with the rest of the family and Aunt Minnie."

"Harry," Minerva said in a warning tone. "Just because Sirius calls me that does _not_ mean you can as well."

He blushed. "He calls you Minnie, I call you _Aunt_ Minnie. That's not the same thing."

Hermione let out a small laugh as Minerva narrowed her eyes silently. "What about your parents?"

Harry's face fell slightly. He loved talking about them but to tell someone they had died was always a hard task. "Um, they died when I was a year old. Sirius took me in after that."

She watched his face for a moment before smiling. "You said the rest of the family. Do you have a big family?"

"Sort of. I've got my aunts Andromeda and Narcissa, my cousins Draco and Tonks, my sort of grandfather Orion… purebloods are all sort of related in some way, but those are my closest family barring Moony and Padfoot and Aunt Minnie."

"That's amazing! I've just got my mum and dad."

Harry considered that for a moment. "Would you like to come for dinner? The whole family is staying at Black Manor as well as a couple of my friends. You and your parents could come and get a little more connected, learn more about the wizarding world."

Hermione turned around and gave her mother puppy dog eyes. "Please?"

"Of course," Helen laughed. Hermione gave her a big hug, and Harry pulled his aunt to the side while they talked.

"I was wondering… what would've happened if she said no?"

Minerva considered the question. He was a very mature boy for his age especially, and she figured he should know. "If you… suppress your magic for long enough, you become a sort of _thing_. It's called an Obscurus and it's very dangerous. They will hurt other people before finally dying. That's why we hope to find all muggleborns, and when they turn us down, we tell the ministry so they can keep an eye on the kids."

Harry's brow furrowed as he took in her words. "So if we hadn't gone to Hermione…"

"It's likely that she and others would have died," Minerva confirmed. "That is why I've asked Albus to agree to this new program. I believe it will help us bring in more students, more muggleborn children."

Harry nodded slowly. "I'd like to fund it. I know my mum would've done the same."

Minerva shook her head slowly, smiling at him. "We'll discuss this with Sirius tomorrow."

"Okay, but I'm gonna do it either way."

"Do what?" Hermione asked, startling them. Harry let out a surprised chuckle, glancing at his new friend.

"Fund a new program to help muggleborn students understand and adjust to the wizarding world," he explained.

"How could you… fund it?"

"I'm a Potter," he declared proudly. "We're an old family with old money. Not to mention, I'm being raised by Sirius Black, who also has a lot of old money."

"Oh," she blinked in surprise. "I suppose it didn't occur to me that there could be a higher society in the wizarding world."

Minerva nodded. "It is mostly made up of the Wizengamot, which is sort of like a senate. They decide what happens in our world and what rules or laws are passed."

"Yeah," Harry nodded, excited. He loved learning and talking about politics. "Most of the Sacred Twenty-Eight families still rule on the Wizengamot, too. The Blacks, Potters, and Malfoys do. Padfoot is acting regent for the Potter family, and Orion handles the Black family seat while Draco's mum takes care of the Malfoy seat."

"And what is the Sacred Twenty-Eight?" She curiously asked as they began walking again.

"That would be the original families," Minerva explained. "There are many stories around them but the most common one is that these families helped Merlin protect the wizarding population during a witch hunt. After that, Merlin commanded them to rule forever. The Wizengamot was created after he supposedly died. Some families have lost their seats in the Wizengamot, but most remain."

"That is so interesting," Hermione gasped. "How did Merlin die? How do we know he did die?"

"He was hurt," Minerva explained. "He gave his orders and left to be healed, but no one could survive apparating with such severe injuries. Some went looking but no one could find him."

"Oh," she breathed, taking in the information gratefully. "You said Padfoot-,"

"Sirius," Minerva corrected with a chuckle.

"Sirius," Hermione nodded. "You said he was regent for your family. What does that mean?"

"It means he takes the Potter seat until I'm old enough," Harry explained. "He also controls our properties and businesses, but we talk about everything before he makes changes. He wants it to really be my business when I take over at 17."

"17? That's young."

"We turn of age at 17," he shrugged. "Aunt Minnie, are we almost done?"

"Just her wand and then we can go home for dinner."

His face lit up. "Good, I hate these robes. They're so itchy."

They entered the surprisingly empty wand shop and waited patiently for Ollivander. Harry had already gotten his wand a week earlier, along with a scary look from the old man that Sirius had cut off by quickly paying and rushing him from the store.

Hermione stood firmly in front of the counter with her head held high, waiting. She didn't even jump when Ollivander popped up from beneath the counter, eyes wild. "Excuse me sir, I need a wand."

"Yes, of course," he breathed, staring at her in wonder. "Of course, my dear. Now… follow me."

Picking out her wand was a quick if odd affair. The first wand that she reached for, Ollivander pulled away and hid under the counter. After that, she tried three more wands before she found hers. It was acacia wood, 12 ¾ inches with a phoenix feather core. It fit nicely in her hand and was tucked away in a holster that Harry bought for her while she was finding it.

"Oh, dear, it's almost 5:30," Minerva hummed, waving away the Tempus spell she'd just cast. Harry's eyes shot to her in panic.

She glanced at her new friend in surprise to see him with wide eyes. "I don't want hooves, Aunt Minnie!"

Minerva rolled her eyes. "We just have to pay and then we can leave."

Helen stepped forward and did just that. Once that was finished, Minerva guided them to the floo network near the entrance to Diagon Alley. Harry showed them how to use it and rushed forward to find Padfoot and Moony sitting across from one another with cold tea abandoned on the table.

"They're coming for dinner," he told them hurriedly. "I'm getting out of these robes."

Sirius exchanged a glance with Remus and rushed after Harry while Remus was left to greet their guests. "Harry! Pup, who is coming?"

"Hermione," he replied as he ran into his bathroom with more casual robes. "And her mum, Helen. Her dad had an emergency tooth thing."

"Relax," Sirius laughed, though his nerves hitched at the thought of meeting the girl that had changed everything. "How was it?"

"Good," Harry answered, tossing his formal robes into the hamper for the elves to collect. "Though she took awhile to find her wand."

"Sometimes it takes quite a few wands," Sirius shrugged.

"No, it was different for her. Remember how you took me and Draco and Theo and Blaise to get our wands together? He let us try every wand they brought out?"

"That's how it works, yep."

"Well, he grabbed a wand and was about to hand it to her and then he just shoved it under the counter and moved on."

"Ollivander's weird," Sirius waved him off. "I'm sure he had some reason or another. She got a good wand in the end?"

"Yep, it even had cool runes on it and roses down the other end."

"Let's hurry up - you should explain to your friends who she is before we get to dinner."

Harry nodded absently as he pulled his sweater over his head and ruffled his hair, trying to rid himself of the useless product he'd put in it earlier that day.

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**A/N:**

**Lmao guys I am SO sorry. I really just posted the prologue and promptly fucked right off, didn't I? **

**Yeah, I was rereading this because I couldn't even remember entirely what it WAS (my bad) and realized it's not as bad as I, for some reason, believed. So here's the first chapter! **

**I only have like four and a half finished so I'm not gonna say when you'll get more than four, but I figured I should give you this. **

**I hope you enjoyed and please review! **


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